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Kei Souma
is a supporting character in the Last Game manga. He is a freshman student at college who is considered to be a cute and easy going young man, and is one of the most popular boys at school along with Naoto Yanagi. However, he is from the countryside which he tries to hide and is jealous of Naoto, who is arrogant and gets whatever he wants (according to himself). He tries getting close to Mikoto Kujou when he sees how close they are to take her away from Naoto, only to fail. However, he stills joins the Astronomy Club in the end to beat Naoto, continuing to have a deep hatred towards him for a while. Background Kei Souma on was born in the countryside, specifically around mountains, on the 29th of November, 1993, as the oldest child of two farmers, Mr. and Masa Souma. Since childhood, he had been trained by his father to take over the farm once he was older. He also has one younger brother, Riku, and one younger sister, Kozue. Souma was a reserve baseball player in high school and a member of the baseball clun. He said that their team was terrible, but since he and his friend Makoto were the only reserve players, they trained very hard together to get an opportunity to play. It is implied that he liked the manager of their team, who always helped him during practices and supported him. Finally, he got an opportunity to play the last baseball game during his senior year, but the day before the game he got food poisoned and was sent to the hospital, so he wasn't able to play which is why his friend Makoto played in his stead. He did an amazing job and their team won the game. Souma later got the news that his Makoto and their team manager began dating, leaving him in dismay as he had presumably started liking her. Because of this, he thinks he is a cursed loser: because incidents like this have happened to him a lot in the past, and he hated the fact that he was always second in everything he did. He ran away to Tokyo because he was getting sick of his hometown and wanted to pursue a rosy life to not be heartbroken anymore and start anew. However, this caused conflict between Souma and his father since he had been trained to take over the farm, and naturally, his father was enraged. They had a strained relationship for a while but later solved these problems. Appearance Souma is a young man who is considered to be handsome and fashionable. He has a tall and slender build, slightly spiky, messy, chestnut-brown hair, much similar to Naoto's but slightly longer. He has light brown eyes, which is sometimes depicted as green and even blue in some artworks. His face is a bit more childish rather than thin and his clavicle is defined. He also has his ears pierced. Personality Initially, Souma was seen being very charismatic and easy going, often seen with a smile. He is the most popular boy in all of the university's freshmen and has many friends and is very social. When talking with his friends and strangers, he exhibits a very charming, kind aura, only to have a different personality with the others in the circles however. He is also very jealous of Naoto and sees him as his rival (though it's mostly self-provocation) and claims to hate him. He originally joined the Astronomy Club to try to beat Naoto and take Mikoto away from him because he wanted to have something Naoto didn't and acted very gentlemanly towards her. Before he tried to "claim" Mikoto to make Naoto jealous, he showed a different, very cold side; referred Mikoto as a "dumb woman" and vilified Naoto. But he had his arm twisted by her (she didn't mean to hurt him though, it was just her automatic reaction). Underneath his charismatic and easygoing personality, it is revealed that Souma is rustic and very ashamed of that fact, so he has been longing to leave the countryside. He was seen being very aggressive and talkative when explaining his past; he hated Naoto because he was rich, handsome and popular but didn't do anything to earn these things (according to himself) contrasting to his situation as he spent all his life studying to be accepted to a college in Tokyo, where he learned to dress and behave properly to fit the metro life and make a good college debut.Last Game manga: Game.05, page 28 Because of this, he often uses outdated words and buys fashion magazines. After a while, he shows his true colors to the others in the club, being portrayed as slightly cold, aloof and annoyed at both Naoto and Mikoto, blubbing at them and describing them as a pair of "stupid idiots". Souma is a bit sarcastic and enjoys making fun of Naoto, and is also shown to be very competitive around him, as he once mentioned that he didn't care about anything else as long as he could beat him. Souma is outspoken, honest and sometimes blunt when talking about specific subjects, and when he becomes too worked up when irritated, his dialect accidentally slips out. According to Mikoto, he can read other people well (after he basically insulted her), which shocked Souma. After that, he begins to "hate" her as well, giving her untrue explanations and weird advice for how she's feeling about Naoto. However, he is noted to not be honest with himself; he won't admit his true feelings and say what he's thinking, which is why he sometimes displays a "tsundere" personality and gets embarrassed easily. He has hidden his true self (being from a farm) ever since he came to Tokyo and has been playing a charming and popular boy. However, Mikoto pointed out that he should be himself, which quite actually touched Souma (though he wouldn't admit it, continuing to call Mikoto troublesome). After this, he slowly starts to develop feelings for Mikoto (which he wants to deny and hide) but doesn't want to get involved with her since he already knows that Naoto and Mikoto like each other, they just need to figure it out themselves. He didn't want to take any risks or get too close to Mikoto until Momoka came along, to which he finally had enough of running away. He also has a sort of inferiority complex, is insecure and self-deprecating. He hates the feeling of having missed an opportunity to get what he wants, and he's always "number 2" in everything and knows he will never be "number 1". This could be since his life has consisted of a lot of bad luck, and due to minor mistakes, he never got anything he wanted. Because of this, he calls himself a cursed loser and a good-for-nothing. Though he claims he hates the countryside and his father who Souma had a strained relationship with after he left the countryside, he says that he actually hates himself. He agrees with his father's words saying he's perfunctory in everything he does, which is why he ran away to Tokyo.Last Game manga: Game.29, pages 18-19 But after being falling in love with and getting rejected by Mikoto, he develops as a person and does things he wouldn't before, however he mentions that he doesn't hate what he has become. As the series progresses, he becomes more genuine with his feelings, more often shown to be kind, caring, supportive and smiles more often, though still a bit sarcastic and likes to tease Naoto. But he considers the Astronomy Club as true friends, and would be fine as long as his friends were with him.Last Game manga: Game.44, page 29 He also becomes more honest to himself and doesn't try to hide his ancestry or dialect, but claims that he can't get out of the character he set for himself in the beginning since he acted like a city boy all this time.Last Game manga: Game.55.5, page 5 When he came to Tokyo, he never thought he would come back home to the mountains, but the people he met in the Astronomy Club, specifically Mikoto, changed him and made him realize that he shouldn't be ashamed of his background. It is also thanks to Mikoto that he was able to make up with father, and ever since he has had a better relationship with his family. Plot Souma originally joined the Astronomy Club to take Mikoto away from Naoto so he could finally have something he didn't, after hearing that the two recently gotten very close. He immediately tried to befriend Mikoto, but in the end, after he tried to take advantage of her, his plan backfired by Mikoto twisting his arm. Souma becomes furious with Mikoto and later proceeds to tell everyone in the Astronomy Club about the fact he is rustic and wanted to beat Naoto no matter what because he got everything he has without any effort. Despite this, he joins the Astronomy Club to beat Naoto and gets closer to its member, but still having a deep hatred towards Naoto, making fun of him and enjoy watching him get "played around" by Mikoto. He was about to quit the club because there were only two girls, but kept going since there were a lot of girls coming to the club to which Souma noted that this was the Tokyo life he wanted. The girls stopped coming however after some events, to which Souma became disappointed but nonetheless never got the chance to really quit the club. He starts thinking that he doesn't want anything to do with Mikoto and also starts to "hate" her because she often bothered and asked him for advice. Despite this, he genuinely starts to care for Mikoto and eventually falls in love with her after spending much time with her, which is why he continued coming to the club. But he wouldn't admit his feelings because he understood that he would never be number one for her and mentions that he indeed should've left the club earlier. He also doesn't want to be involved with Mikoto since she actually unconsciously likes Naoto, which is why he never told Mikoto how he felt. However, after Momoka comes along and develops a crush on Naoto and notices that Souma likes Mikoto as well, she tries to help Souma with Mikoto so they both could advance in their relationship with their respective crushes. However, Souma tells her that that Mikoto and Naoto already like each other and that she should give up too. However, Momoka tells him he is much like a loser because he was just afraid of getting hurt and tells him that nothing would happen if he didn't do anything himself. Souma becomes annoyed at her words but still takes them into consideration. Because of this, he finally confesses to Mikoto later on after deciding to not run away anymore. Mikoto doesn't give him a direct answer at first but later rejects him by confessing that she likes Naoto. Souma is saddened by her response, but nonetheless grow to become more supportive of Mikoto and Naoto's relationship. However, he still likes to tease Naoto and takes opportunities to make Naoto jealous by being with Mikoto, but is happy for her as well. Souma and Momoka also had conversations with each other about their respective crushes and "cheered" each other on, but after their rejection, they told each other that they probably wouldn't be able to move on for a while.Last Game manga: Game.44, page 15 Thanks to Mikoto helping him mend the slightly strained relationship he had with his father, Souma more often asks his parents to send vegetables (which he was ashamed about before) and doesn't ignore their calls and has more contact with them. He also starts to visit his family more often in the countryside, something he thought he wouldn't do before, and finally starts becoming true to who he really is. Years later, Souma lives alone in an apartment. When checking his mail, he smiles upon seeing it being an invitation to Mikoto and Naoto's wedding ceremony.Last Game manga: Game.55, pages 35-36 In the epilog, Souma is working at a large trading center. His seniors say that after his first day at work, Souma complained that he couldn't take it anymore and wanted to go home. He also seemingly cannot find a girlfriend, which is ironic because, according to Fujimoto, Souma seemingly had the highest chances of getting a girlfriend due to his popularity in college, but has now become an "unpopular boy with a country-complex". Souma is also invited to mixers (goukons; group dates) with female announcers by Momoka, but says that his relationships never work out because the girls think he's scamming them in a way since he's the oldest son of a farmer, which disappoints him as his younger brother is going to succeed the farm and not him. Momoka claims that it's because he gets involved with the wrong types and prefers simple-minded airheads. Despite arguing and complaining about each other a lot, the two seems to have gotten quite close over the years. Relationships Mikoto Kujou Mikoto is Souma's crush. Before he realized that he liked her, Kujou would occasionally ask for advice from him and he uses this advantage to joke around with Naoto's feelings for her. However despite that Souma dearly cares for Mikoto especially when she is feeling down. Mikoto hasn't fully understood the extent of Souma's feelings for her yet, even though he has confessed multiple times. Occasionally he gets awkward around her, and especially when she's with Naoto, but he also always remains her friend, and they both have a very caring friendship. According to himself, it's all thanks to how he met, fell in love, and got rejected by Mikoto, that his current self is here today. But, he doesn't really hate what he has become. Even though he likes Mikoto, he supports her and Naoto's relationship, becoming more accepting towards him, which is shown at their wedding as he was seen being very happy for them. Naoto Yanagi Naoto is kind of a rival to Souma. He, like Kujou, asks Souma for advice. Souma has stated that no matter what, he is unable to hate him. Even though he has basically accepted that he has lost to Naoto when it comes to Kujou, he uses every chance he gets to tease or annoy Naoto, especially if that includes interacting with Kujou. Momoka Tachibana Tachibana is annoying to Souma and she always asks him to spy on Naoto and Kujou when they're together. Since both Souma and Tachibana have been rejected by either Kujou or Naoto, they have developed some sort of connection based on this, as they realized that they're both in the same boat. They are still quite frequently annoyed by each other, but Tachibana seems to be the only person Kei speaks to about Kujou, and his feelings for her. Mr. Souma Kei and his father are originally portrayed to have a fairly poor relationship. When Kei's family had made a phone call to him, all but his father had been excited to hear from him. In chapter 28, Kei and his father had immediately argued the moment they had noticed each other. This caused Mrs. Souma to have to intervene, showing her strength to the rest of the circle. At the end of the chapter, Kei and his father are seen arguing again and are stopped once again by Mrs. Souma. In the beginning of chapter 29, Kei's mother explains that Mr. Souma had trained Kei to take over the family business and became enraged when Kei had decided that he wanted to move to Tokyo instead. After a small talk with Kujou Mikoto, Kei waits for his father to return before asking him to send more vegetables when he returns to Tokyo. Which he does in chapter 39, causing Kei's overwhelming emotions to overflow into tears as he slides to the floor in tears in his apartment. Abilities *'Farming:' As the son of two farmers who grew up in the countryside, Souma is very skilled at farming and has done so since he was a child, considering how he was supposed to succeed his father's farm. He is very knowledgeable about vegetables, where they grow, and when and how to pick a vegetable.Last Game manga: Game.28, page 21 Gallery souma-hs.png|Souma when he was in high school 012.jpg|Souma when he joined the Astronomy Club. souma-manga.jpg|Souma on a cover page. souma_manga.jpg|Picture of Souma uploaded on Twitter by the author. 037fixed.jpg|"I know I will never become number 1". 009.jpg|Souma with his siblings. Soumasmile.png|Souma smiling at Mikoto. souma_confession.png|Souma confessing to Mikoto on a summer trip. soumatsun.png|Souma's "tsundere"-ish behavior. souma_smile.jpg|Souma smiling at his birthday party, after being congratulated by Mikoto. Souma_.jpg|Souma talking with Mikoto. souma&tachibana.jpg|Souma and Momoka out eating, in between the time skip. souma7ya.jpg|Souma seven years later, as seen on Mikoto and Naoto's wedding. Trivia *Souma is voiced by Shinnosuke Tachibana in the Drama CD. *His favorite foods are oden and hamburgers.Last Game manga: Game.08, page 14 *He is scared of heights and isn't very good with roller coasters. The first time he rode one was in his second year in high school.Last Game manga: Game.20, pages 17-18 *His crush in high school resembled Mikoto. *According to his mother, Souma has very bad luck, as he got fevers the day before his birthday, always placed second in relays and races, and even the girl he liked came for him for love advice.Last Game manga: Game.29, page 5 Quotes *"I... came to Tokyo for a rosy life. I wanted to get a cute girlfriend and lead a happy life. I don't want to end up broken-hearted anymore. I hate the feeling of having missed an opportunity to get what I want. I'm tired of being number 2. But... I know I will never become number 1."Last Game manga: Game.15, pages 37-39 *"I'll change my life!' Even after saying that, I... didn't change from the time I was here."''Last Game manga: Game.28, page 24 *"I make it a point to not fight battles I have no chance of winning."Last Game manga: Game.21, page 12 (Souma, to Yoshida). *"Until now, I've always thought that having unrequited feelings is pointless. But, if there's just one last strong of hope, I won't give up. Wouldn't this change something if said? Even if it's embarrassing, even if it's a one in a million chance, even if... Actually, I'm already tired of running away."Last Game manga: Game.29, pages 29-31 (Souma thinking, moments before confessing to Mikoto). *"I've always known how this would end. I know. And yet, even in the end, I'm still running. Isn't this good? Even it's disgraceful or uncool, even if it's a losing battle, it's fine! What's so wrong with that..."Last Game manga: Game.38, pages 26-28 (Souma, about his feelings towards Mikoto). *"Today, I just want to see you smile."Last Game manga: Game.39, page 6 (Souma, to Mikoto). *"Even if I stumble or fall over, as long as I have these guys, I'll be fine." (Souma, about his friends in the Astronomy Club). *"''What's wrong with me? Saying something like that to the person the person who already rejected me. However, I don't hate what I have become."'Last Game manga:'' Game.55.5, page 9 (Souma, about Mikoto). References Navigation Category:Characters Category:Male Characters Category:Supporting Characters Category:Astronomy Club Category:Souma Family